Improvement in musical notation for the blind



UNITED STATES PATE T O FICE.

f CORNELIUS MAHOXEY, on NE YORK, N. Y.

IMPROVEMENT IN MUSICAL NOTATION FOR THE BLIND.

Specification forming" part of Letters Patent No. 25,657, dated October- 4, 11559;

Toall whom may concern Be it known that I, GonNnLIUs MA ItoNnY, of the city, county, and State of .New York, have invented or discovered a new and useful Musical Notation'in Raised or Embossed Letters and Characters for the Use of the Blind; and I do hereby declarethe following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying illustrations thereof, forming a part of this specification. 1

The following is a description of said invention.

In the oldsystem of writing music five paralle1lines,with the intermediate spaces, called a stafi', are used. On these lines and spaces certain characters, called notes, which are the representatives of the length of sound, are placed. These lines and spaces are named from the first seven letters of the alpha bet. Instead of the lines and spaces, I employ the let ters, notes, or characters themselves, raised or embossed, attaching to those letters all the various sounds and signs used in the old system to indicate all the various changes which may take place in any musical composition.

My improvement consists in the combination of raised or embossed letters and notes, so as to represent music for the blind.

To enable others skilled in the art to use my invention, I will proceed to describe the same with reference to the illustrations.

Central 0 is taken by all the composers as the dividing-line between the bass and treble. In my system a line is drawn between F-sharp and G-fiat, the first above centralC, which serves as the treble-stai Then aline drawn between F-sharp and G-flat, the first below central C, serves as the bassstaff, all the notes occurring between the first F-sharp above central 0 and G-fiat, an octave above, to be written horizontally above the treble-line; all the notes occurring between the first G-fiat above central G-flat, an octave above that note, to be written horizontally above the bass-line; all the notes occurring between the first G-fiat below central C and the first F-sharp, an octave below that note, to be written horizontally below the Central C ##F B LG -fi The T at the end of the upper line is the sign for the treble, or' the part'to be played with the right hand. The B at the end of the lower line is the sign for the bass, or the part to be played with the left hand.

1 ab 0d of g gabcdef Bid (I'bcd ef I 'gubcd-ef l3 1) (ed c-e g-c-e c-cf If two or more notes in different octaves are struck together, they are represented thus:

edcbcee c Example din octaves T g a b c d efga'bcdef Bgabc-def gabcdef Example in full chords and sevenths. T g-b-d-f a-c-e g-b-d a-c 9-5 f-a 1 e d. d-f

Bfii o a' g de d I 9 a. 9 die (H v Of the notes and rests. A s'emibrei e is designated thus: a

A minim is designated thus:

A crotchet' is designated thus:

quayer is designated thus: 4 v

A semiquaver is designatedthus:

A demisemiquaver is designated thus: a

A hemidemiseniiquavcr is designated thus:

A semibreve rest is designated thus: 7"

, A minim is designated thus:

A crotchet is designated thus: I" A quaver is designated thus: '7 A semiquaver is designated thus: 77 A demisemiquaveris designated thus: "7 7 A hcmidemisemiquaver is designated thus:

Thus the embossed letter renrescnts the sound of the note or the key of the organ or piano, or the string of the violin, or hole of the flute, &o.,

and the embossed note or character attached 

